Updated March 17, 2026 / 8:11 PM EDT
Cuba plans to allow Cuban nationals living abroad — including those in the United States — to invest in companies on the island, Deputy Prime Minister Oscar Pérez-Oliva Fraga told NBC News in an interview aired Monday. Fraga said the government is open to a more fluid commercial relationship with U.S. firms and Cubans and descendants residing in the U.S., and that permitted investments could range from small businesses to large infrastructure projects. He indicated the policy change would be announced Monday night.
CBS News has sought comment from the White House.
If implemented, the move would be a significant change for an economy long dominated by state control and where private enterprise was tightly restricted until a series of reforms beginning in 2021. Cuban officials say the step responds to growing economic strain: an unstable power grid, public protests and pressure from the United States that has tightened Cuba’s access to fuel and other supplies.
Earlier this year, the Trump administration threatened steep tariffs on countries that ship oil to Cuba, a measure that contributed to cuts in fuel deliveries and deepened shortages. President Trump has publicly suggested the Cuban government could collapse, said U.S. and Cuban officials were in talks, and warned that the United States would either strike a deal or take other actions soon.
How much private capital the island could attract remains uncertain. U.S. sanctions and regulations make direct American investment difficult without U.S. government authorization. The Treasury’s Office of Foreign Assets Control and the State Department continue to restrict many transactions and bar direct financial dealings with firms linked to Cuba’s military or intelligence services.
Fraga acknowledged that U.S. commerce restrictions are “undoubtedly an element” affecting the pace and scope of economic change. Andy Gomez, a University of Miami professor of Cuban studies, told CBS Miami that foreign investment carries risks in Cuba, including unclear rules on whether investors would be able to retain and repatriate the bulk of their earnings.